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Notes and Comment A courtyard view of Maloof's house reveals its maker's architectural preferences: simple, clean lines, natural, unprotected wood left to weather, and harmonious plantings and stone and brick work. Maloofs eye for line flows easily from his furniture to his house. The graceful spiral stair in this photo seems almost an outgrowth of the characteristic CU1·ves of his rockers, chairs and settees, such as the curly maple piece at the foot of the stair. The house that Sam built: endangered Most woodworkers are familiar with the distinctive, sculpted furniture that marks the work of Sam Maloof. Those pieces can be found in the collections of major museums and even in the White House. But fewer woodworkers are aware of an equally spectacular work in progress that Maloof has labored over for decades and that may now be threatened: his home. Maloof's first shop, purchased in 1952, 122 Fine Woodworking was a converted chicken shack with a dirt floor, his first house a tiny cottage. As time and money-especially early on-allowed, he steadily added on, demolished, rebuilt, remodeled and landscaped. The result today, though by no means "finished," is a compound consisting of house, shop, guest house, garage (complete with bell tower) and a number of wood storage sheds, all built by Maloof and those who have worked with him over the years (see the top right photo above). Not one to neglect his natural environment, Maloof, along with the help of his wife, Alfreda, has also planted scores of trees, shrubs and flower beds on the property. Maloof's touch is evident throughout the house, from the floors, walls and ceilings themselves, to the secondary elements like stairs, doors and windows, right on Photos this page: Charles Miller Little scraps of exotic woods have often found their way to become door latches or hinge pins in Maloofs house.